Charlotte messenger. [volume] (Charlotte, Mecklenburg Co., N.C.) 1882-18??, 1887-02-05
GRIM WALKERS REVENGE


Between the years 1853 and 1865 full
thousand people heard the story of Grim
Walker. That was during the fiercest
part oil our civil war, and minor Incl
dents we're speedily absorbed and for
gotten. doubt if there are score of
people living to-day who can recall the
| details OF this singular mans adventures.
and do not remember that ANYTHING
save brief outline Of the massacre Of
his family has ever appeared in print.
was pony express rider on the Over
land route. That meant helping to guard
stages, carrying light mail on my sad
die, forwarding dispatches, taking my
turn to act as agent of some stable, and
various other things which need not be
explained. There were then several great
trails leading west from the borders of
civilization, and all were more or less
Travelled, but the favorite routes were
from St. Joseph and Council Bluffs, the
one being known as the northern and
other as the southern route. | was on a
route along the Platte River west of Fort
kearney. which was sometimes fifty miles
long, and sometimes 125, according to
the way the indians were behaving, and
the number OF men we had for service.
Grim Walker was pioneer named
Charles. o. Walker, from near Iowa
City. He was giant in size, naturally
sour and taciturn of disposition, and his
family consisted Of wife and three
children. While the country was ex-
cited over the civil war, and travel by
the Overland had almost come to stop,
except in cases of necessity, Walker and
others formed an immigrant party to
make push for the golden land. When
first heard of them they numbered
twenty wagons and .slxty or seventy peo-
pie, and were on the Platte, east of
Kearney, which was then dangerous
| ground. When the outfit reached
kearney, some were for turning back,
others for electing a new Captain, others
Tor settling down near by and establish
ing ranches. 1t seemed that there were
three or four different factions in the
party, and several bitter quarrels had re-
suited. In the then state of affairs S0e
brave and united men could have scarce
+, ly hoped to reach the Colorado or Wy
oming line, for the Indians were up IN
arms on every trail, and thirsting for
blood and scalps. When it was known,
therefore, that Grim Walker. as he had
come to be known, had been elected
Captain of faction and intended to
push on at the head of only seven fami-
lies, which could muster but nine fight
ing men, soldiers, hunters, Indian fight
ers, and overland men argued and scold-
ed and predicted. Not an argument
could move Grim Walker. Not a pre-
diction could frighten one of his adher-
ents. 1t appeared to them to be a case
where manhood and pride were at stake,
and when it was limited that the military
would restrain them they made. secret
preparations and departed at night. II
was an awful thing for those bigotel
and determined men to dive their
wives and children. consisting of twen-
ty-two people, to horrible death, but
nothing short Of battle with the mill
tary would have stopped them.
They left Kearney one night about 10
o'clock, drawing away quietly and trav-
cling at their best speed. They could
not have gone ten miles before being dis
covered by the Indians. A party of
.wenty of us left over the same trail at
noon next day, and we had gone only
! fifteen miles when we found evidences
that the little party. which was keeping
along the Platte, had been attacked.
This must have been about daylight.
Soon after sunrise they had been driven
/ 10 shelter in grove of cottonwoods, but
before reaching it one of the men had
been killed and scalped. a wagon had
broken down and been abandoned, and
stray bullets had killed woman and a
child as they covered down behind the
cargo OF the wagons. At o'clock in the
afternoon we came to the grove, driving
away the last Of the savages, but we were
too late. Such a spectacle as we there
beheld was enough to sicken the heart of
the bravest Indian fighter. The little
party had been attacked by about 800
redskins, and the fight had lasted for
half day. As near as we could figure
from blood spots on the Garth fourteen
Indians had been killed, and there were
bloody trails TO show that as many moro
had been wounded. The foolhardy men
/ had died game as an Offset. We made
out that their camp had been carried by
a charge, and that the last Of the lighting
was hand to hand. Five Of the women
had been carried of into horrible cap
tivity, while all others had been butch
ered-ail save Grim Walker. The bodies
had been cut and hacked and mntilated
I in terrible manner, but we could have
identified Walker Dy his size, even had
: he been decapitated. The immigrants
horses had all been killed, the wagons
plunderod and burned, aud the savages
were bundling up some Of the plunder
when we came in sight and drove them
away. All that was left ms was the sad
work Of burying the corpses.
fnoufh LATER We heard that Grim